James Cook wants to make one thing clear — it did not happen on “Monday Night Football.”
Replays showed Cook, during one of his 31 carries for 107 yards in a win over the Vikings, getting tackled near the Minnesota 20-yard line before a curious yellowish stain appeared on the underside of his pants.
Social media users immediately speculated that Cook defecated in his uniform as he hit the turf of U.S. Bank Stadium. Joining in on the viral fun was the brand DUDE Wipes, which makes and sells “adult flushable wipes for your butt and dude regions.”
“James Cook is going to need us,” the brand wrote on X.
But Cook spoiled the internet’s fun, saying he did not, in fact, soil himself.
“This is wild I didn’t s–t on myself,” the three-time Pro Bowl running back wrote on X with six crying laughing emojis in reply to a photo of the alleged poop incident.
Cook might not have gone No. 2 on the field, but he was indisputably the No. 1 running back for Buffalo during Monday night’s 23-6 romp. Less than a month after head coach Joe Brady called out Cook’s fumbling issues, he held onto the ball for the third straight game. Cook, who scored once on the ground, picked up his fifth 100-yard effort of the season as he eclipsed the 5,000-yard career mark.
His 31 carries were also the most for any NFL running back this season.
The big night came against a stout Vikings defense that has allowed the fewest points (14.5) and the second-fewest total yards (280) per game.
“We stuck with it, stuck with it, and eventually we broke it,” Cook told reporters after the game. “We knew what type of game it was going to be, a bloody game.”
